The committee will be formed this fall with recommendations due in March 2013

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will be forming a committee soon to investigate whether the use of electronic devices can be increased on planes.

The FAA will form the committee this fall with the intention to study the issue for six months. Recommendations should be available in March 2013, but any real actions could take longer.

The committee will consist of pilots, airplane makers, airlines, flight attendants, mobile technology companies, passenger associations and even the public.

This study focuses on whether passengers on an airplane can use tablets and e-readers during takeoff and landing. The FAA was adamant about passengers not using electronics below 10,000 feet because of concerns regarding interference with aviation systems needed to fly the plane. Since there are so many types of tablets and e-readers, where each individual gadget would have to be tested, the FAA banned them all.

"With the advent of new and evolving electronic technology, and because the airlines have not conducted the testing necessary to approve the use of new devices, the FAA is taking a fresh look at the use of personal electronic devices, other than cell phones, on aircraft," said Laura J. Brown, deputy assistant administrator for public affairs for the FAA.

I am pretty sure that airplane electronics are much better shielded and resistant to interference than a car is. If a car can resist a phones interference until it is right on top of the navigation I am sure a plane will be much more protected plus the fact that a phone won't get that near to the cockpit anyway :P